At
Elk Cove, I met with Adam Campbell (above), whose parents Pat
and Joe established the vineyard in 1974. Initially, they planted
just 10 acres, half Pinot Noir and half Chardonnay. Joe had been a
doctor, and Pat grew up on and apple and pear farm. At this stage,
there wasn’t much in the way of vineyards in Oregon, and after
they’d planted, they went to Burgundy to do a harvest.

The
site was previously an old homestead that had failed as a prune
orchard; then as a strawberry farm; then as a turkey farm. The land
was inexpensive, and there were no guarantees that it would be good
for vineyards. Indeed, it was the first vineyard in Oregon on Willakenzie soils (a
sedimentary rock), and it was also quite high up. To this day, it
remains the highest elevation quality vineyard in Oregon.

Adam
grew up here, and lived on the property until he was 18, for much of
the time in a trailer, which was the family home. He returned to the
vineyard in 1995, and when Adam took over from his folks 60 acres
had been planted on this site, with all the vines planted on their
own roots. Since then, Elk Cove has expanded, buying another 500
acres. 120 of these are now vineyards, which brings the total
acreage to 180. Currently, new plantings are totalling 30 acres a
year.

For
Pinot Noir, Adam likes the Pommard clone a lot (this is one of the
two traditional Oregon clones, along with Wädenswil). ‘115, 777
and Pommard are the one’s we are planting now’, he explained.
‘I would be planting more Pommard, but we already have 100 acres
of it.’

Pinot
Noir is the main focus, but a range of white grapes are also grown,
including Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Muscat
and Viognier.

Elk
Cove Pinot Noir Rosé 2007 Willamette ValleyMade like a white wine, with some red wine blended back in to
give the colour. Appealing sweet cherry and strawberry fruit nose.
The palate has a lovely creamy texture with attractive strawberry
flavour. Integrated and harmonious. 88/100

Elk
Cove Pinot Gris 2007 Willamette ValleyThis is their largest production white wine: they have about 70
acres of Pinot Gris. It has a tiny bit of Gewurz and Muscat in the
blend. Nice, bright, fruity aromatics with a hint of herbinesss and
good acidity. Attractive. 87/100

Elk
Cove Riesling 2006 Willamette ValleyFrom old vines, at 2 tons/acre yield. Whole cluster pressed and
then cold fermented. Sweet limey nose with some honeyed notes. The
palate is dense with rich limey fruit and spice and honey overtones,
with a savoury grip. Some sweetness here, even though it is dry
overall. 90/100

Elk
Cove Pinot Noir 2006 Willamette Valley80% of the Pinot Noir here goes into this wine. It’s low
yields (2 tons/acre), with non-extractive winemaking (cold soak but
without enzymes or dry ice), natural yeasts (but will add yeasts if
necessary), and pressed at dryness into French oak (25% new).
Bright, sappy cherry fruit nose. The palate is spicy and quite fresh
with ripe, sweet cherry and plum fruit and a bit of spicy grip.
Vibrant and satisfying with ripeness and balance. 89/100

Elk
Cove Five Mountain Pinot Noir 2006 Willamette ValleyElk Cove have owned this 50 acre vineyard in the Chehalem
Mountains for 3 years, and it’s one of the four single vineyard
wines they make. Sweet, quite pure cherry fruit nose with some
deeper berry notes. The palate shows nice concentration with supple
ripe fruit and a bit of spicy richness. 90/100

Elk
Cove Wind Hill Pinot Noir 2006 Willamette ValleyAn old vine vineyard purchased in 1997, and converted to
organics a year later. Old Pommard clone vines. Fresh, sweet dark
fruits nose with a bit of spice and some earthy complexity. The
palate is spicy with nice depth and some earthiness. It isn’t just
about fruit. 91/100

Elk
Cove Reserve Pinot Noir 2006 Willamette ValleyFresh, aromatic and quite spice with hints of smoke and tar. The
palate is sweet, dense and quite structured with nicely elegant
fruit and a hint of oak. Great concentration and depth. 93/100